Those that personal a Mac or iPad and want to enhance their system’s Wi-Fi velocity are in luck. Apple has launched free software program updates for quite a few fashions in each product traces that provide precisely this.
iPadOS 26.2 and macOS Tahoe 26.2 have been rolled out halfway by way of December, however this characteristic wasn’t observed on the time. Solely now has it been noticed that they include an enchancment to Wi-Fi efficiency.
In accordance with MacRumors, and referencing up to date tech specs in an Apple assist doc, iPads and Macs outfitted with Wi-Fi 6E are actually able to a most channel bandwidth of 160MHz when related to 5GHz Wi-Fi. That’s double the earlier restrict of 80MHz, and matches what was already provided on 6GHz networks (that are far much less widespread, and require newer router {hardware}). In different phrases, now you can get the sleek streaming, speedy file transfers, and different advantages of 6GHz’s larger bandwidth restrict, with out the difficulties of truly connecting to 6GHz.
Luckily, loads of iPads and Macs assist Wi-Fi 6E. The iPad Professional M2 and later, the iPad Air M2 and later, and the iPad mini A17 Professional all achieve this. As do the MacBook Professional M2 (Professional/Max) and later, the MacBook Air M3 and later, the iMac M3 and later, the Mac mini M2 and later, and the Mac Studio M2 (Max/Extremely) and later. Homeowners of a typical iPad miss out, as do Mac Professional customers, although anybody utilizing one in all probability has it hooked as much as an Ethernet cable anyway.
iPhone 16 and 17 fashions already assist this larger bandwidth, in addition to the iPhone 15 Professional.
To not point out that the software program updates include different new options and tweaks which might be value having. macOS Tahoe 26.2, for instance, provides a brand new ‘Edge Mild’ for improved video calls and brings new AI options to the Mac Studio. iPadOS 26.2, in the meantime, is full of essential safety updates, together with a pair of zero-day WebKit flaws.
To replace iPadOS in your iPad, open the Settings app and go to Common > Software program Replace. The system will inform you if any new updates can be found; if there are, merely observe the directions to put in them. On Mac, open System Settings and go to Common > Software program Replace.
